Man Up! is the MOCSA program for men against sexual violence in Kansas City.
MOCSA recognizes and embraces the vital role men play in the struggle to end sexual violence.
Our mission is to empower men and boys to become active in that struggle.

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Wednesday, March 16, 2011

While our legal system is centered on the premise of the common phrase “Innocent until proven guilty”, that is sadly not the reality for victims of sexual assault. A recent article in The Huffington Post brings to mind the reoccurring fact in our society that victims of sexual assault are blamed for their experience, or were “asking for it”, another phrase known all too well.

For victims of sexual violence, even as horrific as the gang rape of an 11-year old girl by 18 young men and boys (if they can even be called that), it is “guilty until proven innocent”. Somehow blaming a girl for sexual assault, in a state where the age of consent for sexual activity, any type of sexual activity, is 17, makes more sense to members of our communities and even the mainstream media than loudly and confidently condemning the inhumane act of rape and blaming the perpetrators.

And in a similar way that society treats individuals who were accused of a crime but later found “not guilty”, victims of rape are still often treated as “guilty” even while their perpetrators are convicted and behind bars.

About Man Up!

Welcome to Man Up!, the official MOCSA program for men against sexual violence in Kansas City. MOCSA exists to lessen the ill effects of sexual assault and abuse through prevention, education, intervention, treatment and advocacy.

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